SECTIONS 396-404

396.  It is the policy of the Legislature that foster care should bea temporary method of care for the children of this state, thatchildren have a right to a normal home life free from abuse, thatreunification with the natural parent or parents or another alternatepermanent living situation such as adoption or guardianship is moresuitable to a child's well-being than is foster care, that this statehas a responsibility to attempt to ensure that children are giventhe chance to have happy and healthy lives, and that, to the extentpossible, the current practice of moving children receiving fostercare services from one foster home to another until they reach theage of majority should be discontinued.397.  In order to carry out the policy stated in Section 396, eachcounty welfare department or probation department shall report to theState Department of Social Services, in the frequency and formatdetermined by the department, foster care characteristic data andcare information deemed essential by the department to establish afoster care information system. The report shall include, but not belimited to, elements that identify the factors necessitating fostercare placement, the appropriateness of the placement, and the casegoal or objective such as reunification, adoption, guardianship, orlong-term foster care placement.399.  Any minor being considered for placement in a foster homeshall have the right to make a brief statement to the court making adecision on placement. The court may disregard any preferencesexpressed by the minor. The minor's right to make a statement shallnot be limited to the initial placement, but shall continue for anyproceedings concerning continued placement or a decision to return toparental custody.400.  Any county may institute a program of advocates for pupils infoster care placement. A participating county shall be responsiblefor the nonfederal costs of implementing the program.401.  The program shall utilize educational advocates to assistchildren in foster care through the educational system. To the extentpossible, an advocate shall reflect the same racial or ethnicidentification as the pupil being assisted. The educational advocatesshall be required to comply with all statutory and regulatoryprovisions regarding standards of confidentiality that are applicableto children of schoolage who have been placed in foster care. Theresponsibilities of an advocate shall include at least the followingduties: (a) Facilitating the school enrollment of pupils in foster care. (b) Locating a pupil's transcripts, immunization and school healthrecords, individual education plans, and having these documents sentto the school to which the child is applying for enrollment, and tothe department so that the information can be included in the child'shealth and education passport. (c) Educating foster parents regarding how to enroll the pupil inschool and what educational services are available.402.  An advocate and a county participating in this program shallbe held harmless by the state when acting in their official capacityexcept for acts or omissions that are found to have been wanton,reckless, or malicious.403.  An advocate shall not be assigned to assist any minor infoster care placement who has been appointed a surrogate parent.404.  Any school district that has a foster youth services programshall not be eligible to participate in the program authorized bythis chapter.